As far back as Dan Mesyar can remember, he knows he had a glove on
his hand.

"I had three older brothers, so I started real young," he said. "In
the summertime that's all we did--play baseball every day."

Apparently all that practice paid off for the Calvin senior, who
finished the season among the top five hitters in the conference.
He also finished second in the conference in RBIs. And that was just
offensively. Defensively, he held the top pitching slot for the Knights
during the season and played outfield when he wasn't on the mound.

"One of the reasons I came to Calvin was because I knew I could contribute
here," he said. "I felt that I would have the opportunity to show
what I could do."

As a freshman, Mesyar played only the outfield. "I know that coaches
were thinking, 'He only throws in the low to mid 70s (miles per hour).
He's going to get hit,'" he said. "Most college pitchers throw at
least 80."

But Mesyar, known as "the crafty lefthander," got his chance and
proved everyone wrong.

"Throwing hard is way overrated," he said. "I've learned so much
of it is placing your pitch. If you mix up your pitches and throw
every pitch for a strike, you'll do well."

In addition, Mesyar was able to save his arm for outfield duty and
batting.

"Most pitchers at the college level don't hit at all," he said. "I'm
fortunate that I've had no arm problems."

At Ludington High School, Mesyar set the school record for most career
wins with 38. He was also named All-League for three years as a pitcher.

He hopes to return to this area of Michigan to teach and coach. He
will be back at Calvin for one more year this fall to complete his
degree. "Calvin was definitely the right choice for me," he said.
"I had thought that I wanted to go bigger, but the more I heard about
Calvin and the more I read about it academically, the more I wanted
to come here. Actually the size turned out about right because you
can get the individual attention from the professors here."

"I wouldn't turn back for anything now," he added. "It is so highly
regarded to have a degree from here. Next May when I get my diploma
it will be a very special day for me."